Su Chen assud an unusual posture inside his room and began practicing according to the book's instructions.
Gradually, he felt his heart pounding — faster and faster — while a sound like crashing waves filled his ears.
His blood surged with increasing speed. Body temperature climbed. His skin flushed crimson, and beads of sweat the size of soybeans rolled down his body.
On his first attempt, Su Chen managed to hold out for only half an hour before his throat burned like it was on fire. He guzzled water straight from the tap for over three minutes before the sensation finally eased.
"Phew..."
He panted heavily, registering the changes in his body with quiet astonishnt. 'That half hour of training was more efficient than four or five hours of what I was doing before...'
If he'd had this thod from the start, he wouldn't have needed to grind away for hours every day just to push his body to its limit.
At the sa ti, the panel flashed.
[Molten Stone Forging thod — Beginner: 1%]
[The Scholar has detected new secret knowledge. He feels delighted. Ti requirent reduced: one year.]
Hm? Su Chen's mind jolted. A full year shaved off, just like that?
It looked like all the initiation requirents were now fulfilled.
He glanced down, and sure enough, two gleaming golden characters shimred beside Scholar — Initiate.
Su Chen couldn't suppress a surge of anticipation. He took a deep breath and initiated without hesitation.
In an instant, his pupils contracted sharply. His thoughts sparked to life with an intensity he'd never felt before.
Deep within his mind, it was as if fireworks had detonated — mories long buried and forgotten ca flooding back. His thinking seed to grow sharper, keener.
[Scholar initiated.]
[Class ability acquired — Scholar's Stance.]
[Scholar's Stance: Proficiency gain efficiency 50%.]
Su Chen's heart hamred. He silently clenched his fist.
Good. This was good. The Scholar lived up to its na.
A direct boost to proficiency accumulation efficiency — simple, brutal, and exactly to his liking.
Of course, this was only the ability displayed on the panel. He could feel tangible improvents to his cognitive acuity and observational skills as well.
When his stamina had partially recovered, he switched to ntal training. The results were outstanding — he could feel himself sketching the candlelight visualization noticeably faster.
He didn't stop until deep into the night, when his ntal fatigue reached its absolute peak.
[Candlelight ntal Forging thod — Mastery: 40%]
'It really is a significant improvent. Before, ntal training at peak fatigue would only push five to seven percent at most...' Su Chen mused as drowsiness pulled him under.
Early the next morning, he was jolted awake by relentless knocking at his door. Whoever it was showed no signs of stopping unless he opened up.
He threw on so clothes and opened the door. Three people stood outside in matching blue-and-white uniforms. The one in front was stone-faced. "Nanfeng Academy Inspection Division — room check..."
"Room check?" Su Chen's eyes narrowed. He propped one arm against the doorfra. "Funny — I seem to recall the academy rules say private rooms aren't subject to inspections?"
The lead inspector's expression shifted, caught off guard. Before he could respond, one of his companions spoke up: "Quit talking and cooperate. Spot inspections — private rooms are included."
The man stepped forward to push Su Chen's arm aside, only to find it felt like shoving against an iron bar.
"You—" The man's face changed. He bore down with silent effort, but Su Chen didn't budge a milliter.
"Are you sure you want to get involved in this?" Su Chen's question carried an unmistakable subtext.
The lead inspector's jaw tightened. He watched his companion's face turn beet red, both hands straining now, yet Su Chen stood exactly as he had been — breathing even, completely relaxed. The inspector swallowed hard.
'This guy's supposed to be a new student?'
'My friend is practically ready to initiate as a Blacksmith — his strength is enormous.'
"Uh... now that I think about it, I believe there is a rule like that. Sorry to bother you." He pulled his companion back and managed a stiff smile.
"No harm done. Just rember for next ti." Su Chen was magnanimous. He watched them walk to the end of the corridor, then called out: "Tell Zhou Zong to knock off the childish stunts."
All three went rigid. Their pace quickened considerably.
'So it really was him...' Su Chen muttered to himself. The list of people with a grudge against him was short. Qi Chuan probably wouldn't stoop to tactics this amateurish, and Jiang He was still a cooperating party.
The only one who'd resort to pulling academy-level tricks like this was Zhou Zong.
'Tch...' Su Chen turned back into his room. He pulled the Shadow Evasion Cloak from under his bed, slipped it on beneath his clothes, and tailed the three at a distance downstairs.
Within the academy grounds, he followed them through winding paths until they reached a secluded grove behind the main buildings.
From a distance, he watched the three link up with Zhou Zong. He couldn't make out their conversation, but Zhou Zong was loudly ranting, clearly furious.
The trio listened with resigned expressions. Eventually, they hurried off, leaving Zhou Zong alone.
"...Incredible strength?" Zhou Zong murmured. "Could his physical talent actually be decent? No wonder Jiang He arranged for him to enter the academy. There's sothing more going on here..."
His eyes glittered with a kind of excitent. "But that makes things even better. If I could bring him under my wing, it could be—"
Crack!
Searing pain exploded at the back of his skull. Before Zhou Zong could react, his eyes rolled back and he crumpled to the ground.
Su Chen withdrew his hand beneath the Shadow Evasion Cloak. In the dappled shadows of the grove, he was virtually invisible.
He glanced left and right, then swiftly rifled through the man's clothes.
Killing him wasn't worth it — drawing the City Lord's attention would be a disaster. This was just a lesson.
Monts later, a piercing scream split the silence of the grove.
Su Chen was already back in his dormitory, holding two small red glass vials filled with a thick, crimson liquid. He examined them closely. "This stuff looks like..."
These were items Zhou Zong had been carrying on his person. The guy was clearly no ordinary student.
Su Chen dug through his mory, and recognition dawned. "Blood-Activating Potion!"
He rembered now — he'd glimpsed a ntion of it while skimming through books at the library, absorbing everything without truly digesting it.
He would have completely forgotten, but after initiating as a Scholar, his cognitive sharpness and mory had improved markedly — enough to dredge this up.
"An F-grade potion. Promotes physical recovery and enhances physical training efficiency..." Su Chen considered. "So Zhou Zong chose a physical class too?"
"Nice haul..." Su Chen grinned and downed a vial without hesitation, then activated the Molten Stone Forging thod.
Whether it was growing familiarity or the potion's effect, he slipped into the zone faster than ever. He kept a slender straw clamped between his teeth, its other end plunged into a large water bucket beside him.
Training efficiency had climbed noticeably. Su Chen trained himself into oblivion — a full twelve hours straight.
Both vials of Blood-Activating Potion went down the hatch, and he'd burned through nearly all his remaining nutrient fluid.
The Strongman loan was finally repaid. The black countdown tir behind the class designation vanished. The relief was almost physical.
[Strongman: 15%]
[Molten Stone Forging thod — Beginner: 55%]
Su Chen could feel the strength in his body growing palpably.
"The developnt efficiency is in a completely different league now..." Su Chen couldn't help but remark. The combination of a proper training thod and the Blood-Activating Potion made progress nearly ten tis faster than his previous grueling sessions.
"Resources really are everything..." Su Chen sighed. He couldn't even find a place to buy sothing like the Blood-Activating Potion, while Zhou Zong carried two vials on him at all tis.
"Must be nice..." Su Chen eyed his nutrient fluid supply — one vial left after today's binge. He'd need to restock tomorrow.
......
"I didn't see anyone... I just felt a sharp pain in my head and blacked out..."
In the faculty office, Zhou Zong's face was livid. "Teacher... this wasn't so prank. It was robbery! Both vials of my Blood-Activating Potion were stolen!"
"I was going to use those for my initiation!"
"Teacher!" Zhou Zong exploded. "You have to get justice for !"
"Do you have a suspect in mind?" The faculty mbers exchanged awkward glances. Zhou Zong's father held considerable status — they couldn't afford to blow him off.
But that particular grove happened to be one of the very few spots on campus without surveillance.
"I..." A parade of faces flashed through Zhou Zong's mind. He actually had no shortage of suspects.
Yet his voice was almost certain: "Whoever knocked out with one blow has to be a professional. I suspect it was... Zhang Hengyu!"
"He must be afraid of becoming a professional and taking his spot!"
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